Tomatoes and Cherries
by LoSinG-CoNscIoUsnEsS
Summary: My Otou-san said love was accepting other people's flaws, Itachi oni-san said it was giving your heart to someone else, Tsunade-shishou said it sharing your life with another... Sasuke said it was tomatoes and maybe a bit of cherries, only because I like them. Sasusaku. Non-Massacre.
1. Chapter 1

oOoO oOoO oOoO **Tomatoes** OoOo OoOo oOoO

oOoO oOoO **and** OoOo OoOo

OoOo **Cherries** oOoO

**Prologue**

The dark sun sank into a sea of color as night slowly approached; wisps of clouds floated around in the sky, their peace interrupted when a tweeting ruckus of birds flew by. The tops of buildings had an orange hue to them, and windows had been left open to catch small breezes.

In the market district of Konoha, vendors packed away their fruits, vegetables, trinkets and toys, while restaurants prepared for the dinner rush. Children were still running in the streets, bumping into adults and each other as they played their energetic games.

On the edge of Konoha, the forest began to take on an intimating look; green leaves turning darker from the receding light. The woody smell of rotting bark and moist grass was an omnipresent aroma that brought comfort to shinobis returning home. Among the pallet of green, was a contrast of pink and yellow.

A young girl of six stood grasping onto the sides of her blue cardigan as she awaited the return of her father. Her hair was short, tied back with a ribbon, and a yellow dress with small dots adorned her persona. Her green orbs scanned the forest nervously, before staring down at her feet.

The dark had never scared her before. Night and day, and darkness and light were a continuous cycle that spun on an internal clock.

When there was light there would always be darkness, and when there was darkness there would always be light. At least that was what her father had told her.

Her Otou-san was supposed to return two days ago, and he was never late when it came to completing missions.

Sakura wrapped her arms around herself, shutting her eyes tightly in order to stop crying. Otou-san had always told her not to cry, it was not the shinobi way to cry. Instead, a true ninja must find the problem, create a solution, and execute it.

The little girl bit her lip, going through the steps: the problem was Otou-san wasn't home, Sakura didn't know the solution, and she wasn't sure what execute meant.

She hated Konoha already and wanted desperately to move back to her village, where she didn't have to worry about becoming a shinobi or her Otou-san getting hurt.

She also wanted to eat the dango her Oba-chan would make for her when she came home from playing. Not to mention, the strawberries and cherries they would pick together, and the pretty flowers Oba-chan would put in her hair.

Her father hadn't been a big part of her life until recently, when he suddenly appeared to claim his daughter and usher her away to Konoha. It was a change that happened so suddenly that Sakura was still having trouble adjusting. And the worst part was that she didn't even get to say bye to Oba-chan.

Her internal battle, emotions versus shinobi conduct, had ended as she broke out in tears. Rubbing her eyes she tried to get rid of them before someone saw and made fun of her.

Sakura was being bullied by a group of older civilian boys; they were tall, intimidating and were always poking fun of her large forehead and pink hair. She hadn't gone to the park for days because of them, and tried to take different paths whenever she caught sight of them.

Still, they would find her, tease her, and lately one of them even pulled her hair and pushed her on the ground. Sakura's tears increased in their flow and her green eyes blurred. She was sleepy, hungry, and desperately wanted her father to come home.

A twig snapped somewhere before a tiny voice was heard behind Sakura, "Why are you crying?"

The pink haired girl turned around with wide eyes, as she tried to wipe away the tears. A young boy stood behind her with pale skin and dark hair, his pouty face was pulled together in disapproval and his arms were crossed.

"I-I wasn't crying!" Sakura said, balling her fists that were now on her side, "there was something in my eye," she lied pathetically.

The boy didn't look impressed, his forced maturity and stance shifted as he pointed at the girl.

"You're a terrible liar. Your face gives away everything," he said rolling his eyes.

Sakura's expression contorted for a moment, before she began sobbing again.

She wasn't fit to be a ninja; crying, emotions, fear, they were the exact things shinobi shouldn't have.

"I can never become a shinobi like Otou-san, a-and then he'll never be proud of me" Sakura said, as she rubbed at her face.

The boy in front of her panicked partially out of awkwardness and the other part out of guilt.

"H-hey," he said taking a step closer, "don't cry."

He looked around, silently asking for someone to come and help him. Nii-san would know what to do, he, on the other hand, was just a little boy who had no experience with crying girls.

"What's your name?" he asked, shifting with discomfort.

Sakura looked up at the boy, who stole a quick glance at her, before looking away into the trees, refusing to meet her eyes again.

The pink haired girl sniffed before replying, "Sakura."

She rubbed her eye with one hand, her tears had reduced to small sniffles, "What's yours?"

"Sasuke," the boy puffed out his chest, filled with pride "Uchiha Sasuke."

There was no denying the fact that the girl would recognize his name, the whole of Konoha knew who he was. After all, being the son of the clan's head was quite a big deal.

Sasuke looked at Sakura, searching her eyes for recognition, but deflated when nothing changed.

"Sasuke-kun, why are you here?" Sakura asked.

The sky had turned darker now, for the sun was almost completely gone. Their shadows stretched out with the trees, and a symphony of crickets had begun.

"I was training," Sasuke spoke with some arrogance, "I'm learning a new jutsu, and I'm going to be just like Nii-san."

Itachi Uchiha was a prodigy and brought great honor to the Uchiha clan, for that reason Sasuke always looked up to his Nii-san learning from him whenever he could.

"Oh" Sakura's eyes brightened and she stepped closer to the boy, "You're going to be a ninja too!" the pink haired girl exclaimed.

He snorted before glancing at Sakura with a look of disbelief, "Of course I am," Sasuke snapped, crossing his arms and turning to the right. "I'm an Uchiha, we are the best ninjas in Konoha."

Sakura opened her mouth forming an O, while a plan devised in her head. If Sasuke-kun was from a powerful clan, then he could train her so that her Otou-san would be proud.

"Sasuke-kun, will you be my sensei?" Sakura asked clasping her hands, and twisting her body so her face was in front of Sasuke's.

The dark haired boy backed up, raising his hands in defense at the sudden closeness.

"No way! Uchihas don't help civilians," he said in a matter-of-factly way.

Sasuke was in no mood to have a girl tagging along with him, and this one cried a lot which made him uncomfortable. Plus, the fangirls would probably go crazy if he chose this girl over them, he didn't want to know what they would do.

Sakura shook her head, wiping the last of her tears, and smiled brightly, "But I'm not, my Otou-san is an anbu," she said at the boy hopefully, he had no reason to deny her now.

Sasuke tsked, looking at the smiling girl in front of him, "Just because your Otou-san is an anbu, doesn't mean you'll be good," the dark haired boy said, flinching when the Sakura's face fell.

She looked up at him with the saddest expression he had seen, her green eyes filled with dejection. Sasuke's discomfort returned.

"B-but Sasuke-kun! You're one of the best shinobi's in Konoha! If you were to train me then everyone would realize how amazing you are," Sakura said, noting how the boy began to think.

It was true, Sasuke was better than most children of his age, if he trained Sakura, people would recognize his amazing skills. He could be just as good as Nii-san!

"And," Sakura added, "I make really good bento boxes," she said smiling proudly.

This seemed to attract Sasuke's attention as he nodded and looked off into the trees. A tasty lunch, and the attention of Konoha seemed pretty good to him.

"Can you add tomatoes?" he questioned. Just the thought of the tangy, sweet and juicy vegetable excited him.

"Sure!" Sakura beamed, "And cherries for dessert!"

The sun had completely disappeared by now, and Sakura's father had still not returned, yet that detail went unnoticed to the distracted girl.

"Fine," Sasuke said with a firm tone, straightening out to make his small frame to look intimidating, "From now on, I'll be your sensei."

oOoOo **T **oOoOo** C **oOoOo

**lemme know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**oOoO oOoO oOoO Tomatoes OoOo OoOo oOoO**

**oOoO oOoO and OoOo OoOo**

**OoOo Cherries oOoO**

Chapter 1

Rays filtered through the blue curtains on the window, illuminating dust particles until the strands of light hit the ground. The starch white room and its similarly colored furniture, were dimly lit. Night still crept in some corners.

The scene was oddly peaceful, with muffled melodies of birds and a sleepy stillness; however, movement interrupted the tranquility, as a woman entered the room.

She was old and large, with hips that barely fit through the doorway. Her wrinkled skin and round cheeks squished her eyes shut, only revealing a part of her chocolate brown pupils.

Her gray hair was tied back into a characteristic tight bun, which was held together by two ivory chopsticks. Azumi was the color of coffee, but she often gave off the aroma of tea because of the sprigs of herbs she kept hidden in her clothes.

The old lady didn't walk, she hobbled to places, small and stumpy legs were tired and overworked. Yet, surprisingly, Azumi was once young and quite the trouble maker. Her lack of attention in school and single lifestyle, resulted in a job she would never quit. After all, being hired as a full time caretaker forms certain bonds that could not be severed.

There was something comforting about Azumi, a huggable sort of aura, with warmth and softness that seemed to affect everyone. She was caring, affectionate, and skilled in the art of home beauty care.

Currently the brown eyes lady was pulling apart light blue curtains. Her wrinkled hand un-hooked the small lock on the window, swinging it open, and allowing the fresh air to enter.

Azumi turned to the right, looking at the slumbering girl and shaking her head as Sakura continued to sleep, unaffected.

The old woman shuffled towards the bed, slowly sitting herself down upon it and leaning towards the child dosing in the middle. Her brown hand gently stroked the girl's hair, pulling pink strands out of her face.

"Sakura," Azumi said, in her soul filled voice. There was a thick accent that seemed to make the old lady even more amiable than possible.

Her hand shifted towards the girls shoulder, as she gently shook her, "Sakura-hime, you told me to wake you up early."

The girl's eyes drowsily opened, revealing green orbs that were still hazy with sleep. Sakura mumbled inchoate words, before turning over so her back was facing Azumi.

The old woman sighed and reached to shake the little girl again.

"Sakura, your sensei and training."

Suddenly, the little girl sat up causing the sheets to pool around her legs.

Her small head shot left, and then right, looking for the clock that would tell her the time. It was 8:40, and Sakura was supposed to meet Sasuke at around nine.

"Kami!" she exclaimed slapping a hand on her face.

Sakura pushed the white sheets aside and dropped down from the bed. Her bare feet met the cool, dark wooden floor and quickly worked to take her to the bathroom.

She grabbed a purple toothbrush from the cabinet underneath, and began to furiously brush, her eyes widening when she realized all that needed to be done.

"Obaa-chan, my clothes, my clothes!" Sakura said with the tooth brush still in her mouth.

The little girl bounced while brushing her teeth, the matching pink pajamas were wrinkled and her hair was a fuzzy mess.

Azumi sighed, moving slowly towards the white closet and pulling out a green dress. Sakura quickly spat into the sink, using her hand to cup some water and rinse the toothpaste from her mouth.

She turned around and pushed her pink strands back, "No, Obaa-chan! No! I need training clothes the one Otou-san got me."

Azumi raised a gray eyebrow, before complying with the little girl's wish. She went to a chest of drawers and bent down to the one at the very bottom, pulling out black leggings and a blue top that had slits on the sleeves.

With a brief thank you, the outfit was snatched from the old lady, and quickly changed into.

Sakura was then immediately grabbed by Azumi, "Obaa-chan! I'll be late."

The little girl pouted, as the care taker combed through her tangles. Azumi then took a red ribbon and tied back Sakura's bangs; the piece of silk was a gift from her real Obaa-san back in the village.

As soon as Azumi let her go, Sakura dashed out to wear her ninja sandals. The old lady rushed behind, looking strangely like a penguin as she tried to stop Sakura from leaving.

"Sakura, where are you going? I won't let you leave before you eat something." Azumi scolded, as she lifted a finger. Sakura sighed standing back.

"Obaa-chan I told you a hundred times, Sasuke-kun is my new sensei and he's really good. He said that he'll train me so that I'll become as good as Otou-san," Sakura said, "and I can't eat, I'm already late!" She looked at Azumi's disapproving gaze.

"No eat, and then go," The little girl opened her mouth to complain, but she was cut off by the woman's voice, "At least take a sweet bun and you forgot your bento box," Azumi chided.

Sakura's eyes widened, she had almost forgotten her part of the deal! Nodding she waited patiently for Azumi to return with the goods.

Sakura grabbed the sweet bun in her left hand, and the bento box in her right, going on her tippy-toes to give the bent lady a quick peck on the cheek.

The pink haired girl turned in the entryway, preparing to leave, however, she was stopped once again by the old woman.

"Sakura, this boy, he doesn't happen to be Sasuke, as in Uchiha Sasuke?" Sakura tilted her head back, giving Azumi a clear view of the girl's large forehead.

Sakura nodded and skipped out the door, oblivious of Azumi's worried expression.

oOoOo **T **oOoOo** C **oOoOo

A pink haired girl ran through the colorful streets of Konoha. Blue and purple awnings were opened, providing shade that would be greatly appreciated by midday.

There were a few children on the streets, most of them were little and clinging onto their mother's hands. Women seemed to be omnipresent in the market place, carrying big bags filled with groceries and goods. Sakura dodged another person as she continued to run.

For the past few days they had been meeting at the Uchiha compound's private training ground; private_, private_ training ground as Sasuke-kun had put it, because it belonged to his family.

Unlucky for her, the compound was far away from her house, at least a twenty minute walk, fifteen minutes, maybe, if she ran fast enough.

Training was extremely difficult, Sasuke-kun had made her run around in circles and do at least a million jumping jacks.

By the time they were done, she would be exhausted and greatly considering backing out of their deal. However, Sasuke had assured her that in a few more days doing this routine would be easy.

Sakura felt a drops of water hit her face, and she looked to her left, barely identifying its source as she sped by it. A little girl with blonde hair was shaking red tulips, which had been previously emerged in cool water.

She turned right, into a long alleyway between two buildings. It was a short cut that should get her to the compound without having to go all the way around. She ran through the passage, scrunching her nose at the pungent smell of unknown substances, but then slowed down to a walk, the bento box in her left hand bumped against her leg and suddenly felt heavy.

There was a loud clatter from behind her, as a few garbage cans tumbled down on the ground. Booming laughter followed after, and it was then, in the middle of the dingy alleyway, did Sakura realize exactly who was there.

It was the group of boys, the ones who had been bullying her for the past couple of weeks. They were only a few feet behind her, yet they had yet to notice the girl.

Sakura began to cower, trying to blend into the shadows. Her dark outfit made it easy, but her bright hair and glossy ribbon stood out when she crossed a patch of light.

"Hey, it's Sakura-chan," one of the boys screamed, roughly nudging his friend next to him. The other boy looked up at her.

"And look, she's got food!" he said pointing to the bento box.

Sakura looked down at her hand, and frowned. She had made that food for Sasuke-kun! There was no way she would let the bullies take it away from her. Sakura turned and began to run, if she could reach the compound before the boys got her, she would be safe.

She steeled her resolve and wiped away the tears that had begun to form in her eyes. Sakura thought of hiding out in the crowded streets, but decided against it, in fear of being late for her training session.

With a plan in her head she ran towards the Uchiha compound, as fast as her little legs could take her. The patting sound of her feet was hidden behind the noises of the bazaar.

When she entered a familiar street, her tired body slowing down to a stop. Sakura looked over her shoulder for the bullies, noticing that they were gone. Her breathes were coming out in puffs, mostly out of unease, as she walked through the last main market of Konoha.

Her green orbs admired the venders around her. Odd shadows stretched on the streets and walls, and there were many different smells mixed in the air: perfume, baked goods, and sweet fruits. Rickety wooden carts contained bright trinkets and small objects, attracting the attention of others.

She stopped in front of a particular cart, where a loud woman was haggling away with a merchant. Both stubborn people would not agree on the price for a pretty necklace.

In the end, the vendor won, causing the woman to snap at the man, before dragging her brown haired son away. The little boy sighed and rolled his lazy brown eyes, mumbling something underneath his breath.

Sakura strode quickly now, determined to reach her destination. She left the streets of downtown Konoha, and begun to follow an acquainted dirt path that was surrounded by trees. In front of her, she could see the blurred lines of the Uchiha compound; a village in itself, just for one clan.

The first time she had come here, Sasuke-kun had showed her around the inside. His pride over flowing as he pointed out various landmarks and was greeted by many people.

Everyone seemed to adore him, especially the younger Uchiha girls who flocked around him, completely ignoring Sakura. One of the older girls, who seemed less keen on gaining Sasuke's attention smiled at her.

"What's your name?" She asked, her dark strands were lighter than the rest of the Uchihas, maybe even a dark brown; however, she still had the same inky eyes.

"Sakura, what's yours?"

"My name is Cho," she grinned, her eyes squinting, "You have a pretty name."

Sakura blushed and smiled back at her, complimenting the girls name as well. They walked in silence for a few moments, watching as the younger girls kept tugging on Sasuke's shirt.

"So, I guess you're not a fangirl then," Cho said, looking at Sakura. The pink haired girl's head tilted, she had no idea what a fangirl was.

"What's that?" She asked innocently. Did it have to do with fans? Maybe those girls were actually performers!

"You don't know!" Cho said dramatically, "They're… well it's hard to explain. They're girls that obsess, you know what that means right?"

Sakura nodded, "Okay good, well they're girls that obsess over things, like right now they're obsessing over Sasuke because they all want to marry him," she said ominously.

Sakura's face flooded with shock, "Marry Sasuke-kun! Why?" Cho shrugged, and lifted her arms to stretch.

"Because he's the head's son, if Itachi-san, Sasuke's older brother, doesn't become head then Sasuke will be next in line," she explained.

"Look, Sakura-chan," she said pointing at a little girl in front, "that's my little sister, she's around your age, crazy I tell you."

She stopped turning to face Sakura, Cho clasped her hands together and brought it to her heart.

"I love Sasuke-kun," she said in a high voice, "We're going to get married and have ten children! We'll live in the Uchiha compound, forever and ever and ever! "

Sakura laughed, at the goofy girl who grinned back. They began to walk again, silence returning before Sakura spoke.

"Well, if you don't like Sasuke-kun, then who do you like?" Cho blushed and chuckled.

"You can't just ask someone who they like after meeting them," the Uchiha sighed, "I guess it doesn't matter since you don't know him, he's one of Sasuke's cousins. My fifth cousin, but then again every Uchiha is related," she said scrunching up her face, "too much inbreeding"

Sakura nodded even though she had no idea what Cho meant.

"But at least you can tell me his nam-"

Her wrist was abruptly grabbed by Sasuke as he dragged her away from the crowd. Sakura looked back to wave at Cho, who waved back, yelling something she couldn't hear.

"I was looking for you," he said, turning towards her with a slight pout, "There were so many girls, that I couldn't find you, but then I saw your pink hair."

Currently, the green eyes child looked obediently to her left, looking for the road that Sasuke had pointed out that day.

Trees stood, towering over her, their green leaves shining like emeralds in the sunlight. There was a break in the foliage, made for the very path Sakura had been looking. She peeped in, before running down the bumpy dirt trail.

The pathway opened up to a large clearing, with various training equipment splayed around. The area did not have a lot of grass, obviously because of the vigorous exercises that occurred here. However, Sakura ran past it, reaching a different, smaller training ground where she looked around for Sasuke. After a few minutes the little girl huffed, sitting down against a tree and putting her bento box to her left.

Sakura closed her eyes and began thinking about the book she had picked up yesterday. After training with Sasuke-kun she had ran to a little ninja store, located at the corner of a street. It was run by an old woman, who had a fluff of white hair kept in a top knot and kind gray eyes.

When Sakura had gone there in the morning, the old lady had just opened the store up. The little girl immediately explained the situation, and how she was looking for a book which explained shinobi basics. The store owner understood and handed Sakura an old manual, with dusty smelling pages.

"It used to belong to another customer of mine," the woman had said, "She gave it back to me after learning it all up. Took her a week. She's quite famous now, you know. Maybe you'll be like her."

Sakura had started to read the manual last night, it was extremely challenging. Most of the explanations made sense after she had learned the definition of each term. By the time she was ushered to bed, she had finished almost one-fourth of the b-

A hand gently tapped Sakura's right shoulder, causing the little girl to turn to the right. Her green orbs were met with black, but not the onyx of her Sasuke-kun, more mischievous ones.

"Finally, found you," the bully said. Sakura's eyes widened immediately, and she got up on her feet preparing to run.

"Not so fast," the brown haired boy grabbed her hair preventing any movement.

He pulled painfully at Sakura's pink strands, twisting it so she would spin around. There were other three other boys behind this one, laughing at the little girl.

"Sho don't pull her hair so hard! It'll all come out and make her ugly forehead bigger!" The boys all laughed obnoxiously at the bad joke, the leader grabbing Sakura's hair smiled wickedly.

"Why'd you run away from us back there?" Sho asked, pushing the little girl. Sakura closed her eyes, as her knees and palms scraped against some rocks. She refused to let those bullies see her cry.

As if reading her thoughts, the dark haired boy bent down to come face to face with her. Grabbing her chin in his hand, and roughly moved it so she faced him.

"Aw, Sakura-_chan_ are you going to cry?" he said mockingly.

The boys behind him dutifully snickered, "Of course she is," one of them said, "pink hair, large forehead, and now crying! She's such a freak!"

The other boys all shouted in agreement, repeating the word over and over again. Their shoes scraped the dirt ground, as they continued to laugh and come up with new jokes and insults.

"You're a weirdo, an outcast!" Sho said angrily, "You don't belong in Konoha, get out!"

It was true, she didn't belong in his Konoha; different was not accepted, that's what his parents had always told him. There was nothing wrong with what he was doing. T

he dark haired boy pushed the girl again, sending her completely flat on the ground. Her cheek scraped the side, before she got back up on all fours and went to stand up again. Her face was streaked with tears, and her ninja clothes dirty.

"N-no!" Sakura started, "I have friends!" All the boys looked at each other for a moment, before bursting out in loud laughter.

His brown hair was an angry mess and his eyes slightly confused, it was the first time she had talked back to him, and he wasn't going to let it go.

Sho shook his head and grabbed the girl's wrist tightly pulling him towards him. "Oh ya, like who?"

"I am," a new voice said behind them.

Everyone stilled before the group parted, allowing their leader to see the intruder.

A little boy of seven stood, with a canvas bag slung along his shoulders, his small body stood proudly; his onyx eyes were narrowed at the boy who held Sakura's wrist.

"Who are you?" Sho snapped.

"I'm Uchiha… Uchiha Sasuke. What are you doing on my property?" he asked crossing his arms.

All the other children's eyes widened mumbling to each other, before Sho quieted them down with his voice.

"This girl," Sho began, tugging Sakura closer to him, "was intruding on your property, so I came to stop her."

It was a good enough excuse. The Uchiha clan were ninjas, while this little thing was most definitely a civilian.

"No, I invited her, you're the only intruder. I want you to leave or I'll call Itachi Nii-san."

The boys may not have heard of him, but they most definitely have heard the name Uchiha Itachi. There was no way in kami that any one in Konoha didn't know who he was.

Sho hid his surprise, and let go of Sakura's wrist, without glancing at her. He didn't want to push the annoying boy any further. It wasn't the arrogant shrimp nor the threat of his dangerous brother that scared Sho, it was the boy's family.

Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he walked up to Sasuke and crouched down so they at were eye-level.

"You're lucky you're from an affluent clan." The other boys followed their retreating leader into the woods.

Sasuke shifted awkwardly after the boys left, unsure of what to do. If he had been a bit early, Sakura would have never gotten hurt, but his mom had insisted that he eat before leaving, forcing him to comply.

The pink haired girl who stood in front of him rubbed her eyes trying to stop herself from crying. Sasuke glanced at her, quickly noting the large abrasions on her knees and the scratch on her cheek.

"Sakura," he began, looking somewhere in the corner, "Are you okay?"

She nodded as a reply.

Honestly, he had been a bit frightened by the older boys as well, they were intimidating, tall with deep voices. Luckily he had remembered his Nii-san's advice about appearance and quickly toughened up.

Sasuke looked at her painful scratches, feeling uncomfortable. "Why were they bullying you in the first place?"

Sakura looked up and began to loudly sob. Sasuke inwardly panicked, so far he had made her cry twice by saying something stupid.

He glanced around making sure no one was looking. Trying to fix his error, he shuffled towards Sakura and patted her shoulder strangely, refusing to look at the girl in front of him. His intention had been to give her a quick pat on the shoulder, which would magically stop her crying and they could start training. However, she had other plans.

There were only a few women in the world who were allowed to hug him. First came his mother, then Obaa-san, and sometimes Itachi's friend, because she was pretty. So when Sakura had wrapped her arms around his tiny body and began to sob into the crook of his neck, he was dazed.

His arms were stuck numbly on his side, and he stood awkwardly like a plank. He tried to move his shoulders, to loosen her death grip. It didn't work.

After a few seconds, he finally gave in, blushing slightly as he returned the hug less intensely. No one better have seen them otherwise he would probably die from embarrassment. He hoped Sakura would let go now, but instead she began to talk.

"They called me a freak, because I have pink hair and a large forehead. And they told me to leave Konoha" Sakura said in between sobs.

Sasuke almost nodded at what she said.

It was true, when the little boy had seen Sakura the first time, he had been a bit peeved by her bright pink hair and large forehead. But, after getting to know her better, he got used to her unusual features and even thought that she might be, a tiny, tiny, tiny _tiny_ bit pretty. But he would never tell her that.

"I think you look ok." Sasuke said mumbling, his face tinting red.

It was the first time he had complimented someone of the opposite gender, not including his mother. 'Ok' was as far as he would ever go.

"Really?" Sakura said, smiling.

She let go of Sasuke, who was grateful for the freedom; he took a deep breath of air and sighed. Sakura wiped her face with the back of her hand, removing tear streaks from her cheeks. She looked down at the ground for a bit, before glancing at Sasuke, and looking down again.

The dark haired boy stared at Sakura, slightly confused. The little girl blushed and looked up uncertainly, "Do you, did you mean it when you said we're friends?"

Sasuke hesitated, he really had just that at the whim of the moment. It was hard to become friends in a few days, especially since it was him. He looked at her scratches, he really didn't want to see her cry again, so he just nodded.

Amazingly, Sakura's face completely brightened up, as if nothing had ever happened. "Really Sasuke-kun?"

She exclaimed jumping up and clapping her hands together. He nodded again, slightly irked.

Sakura laughed, "We'll be the bestest of best friends!" she pounced on him and giving him a bone crushing hug.

The little boy tumbled backwards, holding on to Sakura as they both fell on the ground.

Sakura giggled at Sasuke's face before getting off of him and sitting by his side. The black haired boy grumbled, his elbows hurt from the fall and he was pretty sure that the back of his clothes were dirty. Sulking, he crossed his arms and pouted, turning his face away.

They sat side by side in silence, before Sakura began to talk.

"Sasuke-kun?" she asked sweetly, turning her face towards him. Sasuke's eyes drifted towards her scratch, and then to her green orbs, before looking away.

"What?" he asked sullenly, his dark ruffled dark strands swayed as a breeze passed by. He trained his gaze at the bento box sitting innocently next the tree, the purple cloth was even darker under the shadows.

"What does affluent mean? Sho said you belonged to an affluent clan," Sakura asked slightly confused. Sasuke looked up and scrunched his face, remembering exactly what the bully had said.

He shrugged his shoulders, and picked up a stick that was next to his legs. "I think it has something to do with the flu."

"Oh, I get it! Your clan is affluent, it can protect against getting sick. A- flu-end!" Sasuke nodded in agreement, it made sense. His family was the best in Konoha, so they could obviously could prevent getting sick.

"Oh-ho, what do we have here" a playful voice said above them.

Two teenage boys dropped down from the trees, wearing dark shinobi clothing and pride fully displaying leaf headbands. Their inky eyes examined the scene in front of them, one with a small smile, and the other with a mischievous grin. They looked at the little girl who had turned to face them, the only real pigment among the four, quickly noticing the scratches on her body.

"Ni-san!" Sasuke exclaimed jumping up to stand in front of him.

The older boy ruffled Sasuke's hair, and kneeled in front of him. Sasuke looked excitedly at his brother, glad he was finally home. Itachi's mission had been extended by almost two weeks, the situation was more severe than earlier thought. Sakura got up too, and came to stand a little behind Sasuke. She shyly shifted from side to side as she looked up at the boys in front of her.

"Hey, you little brat, no hi for you cousin!" The other boy said.

Shisui's wavy short black hair moved as he bent down to look at the two little kids, especially the one he hadn't seen before. If the rumors were true, this new inhabitant of Konoha was the heir of a certain teammate of Itachi. He glanced up at the other teenager, sharing a quick look.

"Ohayo, itoko" Sasuke said grumpily, Shisui rolled his eyes at his sulky little cousin. Sasuke was too much of an Uchiha.

"You look just like Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed, surprising everyone. Her shyness had unexpectedly disappeared as she came closer to Itachi. "Except you're a lot older and look tired"

Shisui laughed, and nudged Itachi, "This is what you get for inheriting your father's eye lines." Itachi frowned at the disrespectful comment, before turning to the girl in front of him.

"You never told us your name hime," Shisui said smiling, as Sakura blushed at the nickname, her shyness returning. Sasuke who stood watching the sudden attention given to his companion, pouted.

"Her name is Sakura" He said unhappily, crossing his arms and turning his face upwards, "and she's my student" Sasuke glanced at the little girl from the corner of his eyes, "… and my friend," he added in a mumble.

Sakura smiled brightly, "Yup! Sasuke-kun is going to train me so I can be just as good as Otou-san!"

Itachi and Shisui shared another look, their theories having been confirmed. The slightly detached, aloof, but undoubtedly powerful ninja was most definitely Sakura's father.

"So Sakura, I hope it wasn't training that got you injured," Itachi said disapprovingly, he looked at Sasuke with steady dark eyes "and I most certainly hope it wasn't my younger brother"

"Oh no!" Sakura exclaimed, "Sasuke-kun saved me! He's just like those knights from fairytales!" The dark haired boy flushed at the comparison turning away with his cheeks red. He had been embarrassed way too many times today.

"Saved you from what?" Shisui asked, using a kunai to pick at his nails.

Sasuke answered for her, "A bunch of civilian boys. They were teasing her about her pink hair and forehead," he said pointing at Sakura's face. The little girl watched him with big doey eyes, causing him to look away.

"They were bullying you hime?" Shisui said, his face contorting slightly. He stared at Sakura understanding the strangeness of her appearance, he honestly had no idea how her hair could have ended up that way. Her mother must have been a red head.

"Ya," Sakura said, punching her fist up in the air, "They were meanies, but when I become stronger I'm going to make them say sorry to me!" She had a tough expression on her face, completely opposite from what she had with the bullies.

Shisui laughed and ruffled the little girl's hair, "It was nice meeting you Sakura, but alas," he said dramatically, putting a hand to his heart "I must leave you all, the mission report won't file itself!" He smacked the back of the back of Sasuke's head, before disappearing in a poof.

The little boy frowned, turning to retaliate only to notice his annoying cousin was gone. His attention was quickly switched to Itachi, who had placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

"Do you know the name of those boys?" Itachi asked, his dark pools scrutinizing Sakura's wounds. The little girl nodded her head.

"Ya, I think one of them is Sho. His eyes are the same colors as yours, but he has brown hair," Sakura said tilting her head.

Itachi nodded, "Sit by the tree so I can heal you." He lightly nudging Sakura to the spot behind her. The girl followed his instructions and walked over, plopping down next to her bento box.

Itachi kneeled in front, his hands glowed a light green, before he moved up to her knee healing the scratches; the wounds stopped bleeding, but didn't completely close up. His hands moved up to her face, gently cupping her cheek. Sakura's eyes widened at the amazingness of the whole display, Onii-san had completely healed her! As the older boys hand began to retreat, Sakura quickly grabbed it and brought it up to her face.

"That was amazing! How did you do that? I don't see any lights in your hand," Sakura's face scrunched. The dark haired teenager smiled and removed his hand from Sakura's, and placed it on her head.

"It's an extremely basic healing jutsu that every anbu knows, mostly to prevent infections and such," Itachi recited, remembering something else, "There are many other intricate ones, which require precise chakra control. One of the legendary Sanin of Konoha is the best medic in the whole Shinobi world."

Sakura nodded under the weight of Itachi's hand, "Then I want to be a medic too! So, I can protect Sasuke-kun just like he protected me!" She said excitedly, "Oh and don't worry Onii-san I'll heal you too!" She smiled patting his head, just like he had done.

Itachi chuckled, "I am grateful for that Sakura," he said looking at his brother, "Help from friends, especially teammates is never a bad thing." The little boy huffed and crossed his arms.

"I know Nii-san! You always say that," Sasuke said forlornly.

The boy's face suddenly brightened up as an idea popped in his head, "Nii-san since you're not doing anything, can you help me train!" the dark haired boy said, quickly adding "and Sakura too, I guess."

Itachi look steadily at his brother. The older boy wanted nothing more than to go home and rest, this mission had taken almost everything out of him. They had been ambushed, had gotten lost and not to mention, one of their teammates had been killed. He sighed standing up, the desire to see his brother grow stronger over ruled all fatigue. Itachi smiled motioning both of them to come out in the middle of the training ground.

The Sasuke and Sakura ran excitedly to where Itachi had pointed to, standing in front of him with eager eyes. The older boy almost laughed, the two of them looked like excited puppies.

"Well, today we're going to work on some of the basics. There are three main forms of Justus. Do you know them?" Sakura raised her hand, Itachi smiled and nodded to her.

"Well," she said counting off with her fingers, "There's taijutsu, which is fist fighting and use of weaponry, genjutsu which has to do with illusions for attack and defense and ninjutsu which is basically everything else."

"Good job, Sakura" Itachi said.

"Today," he continued, "We'll practice using a shuriken and a kunai." Sasuke suddenly perked up, he had been practicing with those for a few days and had pretty good aim. Sakura raised her hand.

"Umm Onii-san? I don't know how to use a shuriken or a kunai," She said doubtfully the weapons seemed pointy and painful, she didn't want to get hurt. Sasuke looked at her and smiled proudly.

"I'll teach you Sakura" He said taking the kunai from Itachi, and handing it to her, "Nii-san see I'll teach her everything you taught me!"

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By the time they were done, Sakura's arms felt like jelly, but she had most certainly improved. Itachi had insisted that they should learn how to use both their hands to throw.

She had been hesitant to do so, because she was right handed and could barely hit the target already; however, it turns out she wasn't too bad. Sasuke, on the other hand, was amazing, he could hit the target dead on with both hands, almost never missing.

During this whole time, Itachi observed his little brother train, specifically his bandaged hands. Today, when he had gotten back from his mission, his mother had told him about how Sasuke had learned the Fireball jutsu. Itachi had been furious at his father, who had obviously caused the boy to learn it.

Poor Sasuke had practiced feverishly, only to receive a good job and a pat on his back. Why did their father have to be so stoic? All Sasuke had ever wanted was his approval even if it meant turning into someone he wasn't.

A ninja clad in black had popped out of nowhere, telling Itachi that he had been summoned by the Hokage. Before leaving, the older boy had handed both them a few kunais and shuriken to keep and use for throwing practice tomorrow. Sasuke protested, saying that he wanted to continue training, but Itachi sternly disagreed putting Sakura in charge of Sasuke's food and rest.

Currently the two little kids leaned against the tree, with a now empty box happily sitting by them. Birds chirped, hopping around on branches and singing merrily out loud.

Sakura felt a bit drowsy after the long practice, while Sasuke sat quietly, unmoving. Her head drooped all the way, almost falling down to the side before she quickly sat back up. Sasuke scoffed and grabbed the bento box, standing abruptly and walking away. Sakura looked up at him, pushing herself off the ground to follow his lead.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked confused, trailing behind. Her energy suddenly regenerated and she jumped next to him, tugging on his dark blue sleeve, "Where are we going?"

"Home," he answered, turning to look at her, "I'm walking you home, I mean." Sakura twisted her face in confusion, "You're tired, plus the boys can't bully you if you're with me," he explained, red tinting his cheeks

"Oh Sasuke-kun, you're so sweet!" she exclaimed smiling, grabbing on to his hand and pulling it, "But I don't want to go home, let's go to the park and play!"

Sasuke protested, but the surprisingly strong girl pulled him, causing him to stumble as he tried to keep up.

They were able to easily slip by the streets of the market place; most of the people had gone to work or returned home. A lot of the merchandise had reduced in size, especially the fruits and vegetables. Vendors were counting up their earnings, recording it in small books and tallying up their sales. In the corner, a group of loud boys were causing quite a ruckus. Specifically, a blonde haired one, who was jumping up and down and waving a stick in the air.

Blue eyes caught sight of them, pushing through the boys to run towards them. Sasuke seemed to notice this and stopped, causing Sakura to fall back with him. Her eyes widening at the sight of the blonde boy, he was the one Otou-san had wanted her to meet.

"Sasuke-teme!" The dark haired boy winced at the nickname, looking at Sakura to see if she heard. She did, and giggled slightly as she looked at him.

"Sasuke-teme?" Sakura said quietly, poking his shoulder.

Sasuke realized they were still holding hands, and quickly pulled away, hoping Naruto hadn't seen; however, the blonde was his oblivious self, noticing nothing. He came to stop in front of them and stuck his tongue out.

"I haven't seen you for days!" Naruto said, lifting his hands in the air and waving them dramatically, "I've been training , you know and I'm super strong! Believe it! I could probably destroy a hundred clones in just one kick," he pumped his hand in the air while jumping. Sasuke rolled his eyes, while Sakura laughed.

"You're funny," she said, covering her mouth with her hand. She blushed, now aware that she had talked to a complete stranger.

Naruto's eyes widened as he looked at her and pointed, "Heeey! It's pink!" He screamed.

The little girl had a mixed expression on her face, Sasuke prayed she wouldn't cry and quickly punched Naruto in the arm.

"Shut up, dobe," the Uchiha grumbled, but the blonde haired boy stuck his tongue out again before moving towards Sakura.

He grabbed a piece of her hair, and brought his face closer to inspect it. Nodding his head, he moved back.

"Yup, it's really pretty! Just like mom's hair, she has red hair you know?" Naruto grinned at Sakura, whose face turned a bright red. Sasuke frowned, grabbing Sakura's hand to drag her away, Naruto was being annoying.

"Hey! Wait!" the blonde yelled running up to the both of them. "You never told me your name!"

"It's Sakura, now we're leaving," Sasuke spoke as he continued to move forward, pushing past Naruto.

"Hold on a second, teme!" Naruto shouted desperately, trying to get them to stop.

"Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan," He said pulling on the little girl's hand, Sakura helplessly stumbled backwards at Naruto's strong grip, "Do you want to play with us?" Naruto asked motioning to the group of boys.

Sakura shook her head, she didn't want to play with so many people, especially boys she didn't know.

"Gomen, Naruto but we're going to play at the park, you can come with us if you like." The blonde nodded, asking Sakura and Sasuke to wait while he went to tell the rest he was leaving.

Sasuke frowned, "Why did you have to invite him."

He and Naruto had been friends for a long time, mostly because of their parents who apparently knew each other since genin days. The boys had played with each other when they were younger, developing a healthy rivalry that would most certainly continue for a long time.

"Why? I like him he's really nice and funny!" she smiled, "Aren't you both friends?" Sasuke shrugged, and looked at the approaching boy.

"Okay! Let's go!"

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By the time they were done playing, the sky had started to get dark. It was around six in the afternoon and Konoha was crowded again. Couples walked hand in hand to different restaurants and bars, while some children ran along the streets, pushing through citizens. Red lanterns were lit around the shops, and the yellow street lights competed with the setting sun.

Sasuke had insisted that he walk her home, in order to wade off any bullies; however, Sakura convinced him that she would be fine, especially since she was going half the way with Naruto. The two chattered while they walked, discussing meaningless things from ninjas to new movies. They both stopped at an intersection where a cobbled road led to the Namikaze compound.

"See that! I live there with my parents, you should come sometime Sakura, I'm sure mom would love to see your hair!"

He grinned and gave her a big hug before running down the street, she laughed and continued to walk home.

Sakura kicked small pebbles that lay intermittent on the road. Her house was located at the end of the street, it was a traditional and simple one storied building, just as she liked it.

Turning left, she entered the front courtyard, which had a pink Sakura tree on one side and a tiny pond at its foot. Brightly colored koi fish swam excitedly, hungry for food as they came to the surface, greedily opening their mouths. Sakura's giggle turned into a squeal as a bread crumb went flying next to her ear, landing perfectly in front of the fishes. She turned around,

"Otou-san!"

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**I just want to thank all the people who reviewed! **

**Sakura 6, Naruto 6, Sasuke 7**

**QUICK QUESTIONS**

1\. FIFA 2014 who are you supporting?

2\. Do you suck at karaoke like I do?

(I was at a party, and let's just say my singing was so bad someone produced a whale noise out of laughter. It was so embarrassing lol, and I couldn't hear what I was saying because you have to put on these headphones on which blasted loud music!)


	3. Chapter 3

**oOoO oOoO oOoO Tomatoes OoOo OoOo oOoO**

**oOoO oOoO and OoOo OoOo**

**OoOo Cherries oOoO**

Chapter 2

"Ano, Otou-san can we go to the pet store next?" Sakura asked, as she ripped up some grass.

Her father didn't reply and continued to stare absently at the sky. He finally understood why the Naras enjoyed cloud watching so much, it was entrancing.

To say he hoped his child had been a girl, would be a lie. After all, being the sole heir to such a powerful blood line, would require them to possess all his talents and more. But, Sakura didn't even to have a miniscule amount of his speed, or capacity.

If she were to carry around her father's name then she would surely be challenged, and defeated by his family's enemies. Maybe that's why she was still Haruno Sakura, and not Hatake Sakura.

The little girl poked her father's arm, "Otou-san?"

The silver haired man stood up and brushed some of the grass that had gotten on his pants. Watching as Sakura scrambled after him and smiled. Kakashi sighed as his daughter grabbed his hand, pulling him along towards the pet store.

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Birds chirped loudly in the dusty courtyard, where a swing lay still underneath a tree. The sun beat down on Konoha, shining powerful, angry rays even though it was still early in the day. Low murmurs could be heard from inside the school, as a room filled with children and parents listened carefully to what the teacher was saying. However, their concentration was interrupted as they felt a new presence arrive.

"You're late," Iruka said, glancing at the clock, "almost an hour late."

All eyes in the classroom turned to look at the pair that had just entered, some smiled in greeting, while others rolled their eyes. The room was hot, and perspiration glistened on skin, most of the spots by the window were filled, as people tried to catch the subtle cool breezes that passed by.

The classroom itself was the color of crème and tea, with splashes of red and green on window panels. In the front was a large chalkboard, and a grainy brown desk where Iruka sat. He moved his feet impatiently, and frowned at the pair.

"Nani?!" Sakura exclaimed, holding her hand in front of her mouth.

She wore new ninja clothes that Otou-san had recently gotten her. They consisted of a light blue dress and dark red leggings, her pink hair had been kept into her usual style, with the red ribbon popping out like bunny ears.

Sakura turned around and tugged on her father's hand, "Otou-san said that the orientation began at 10."

"Hai, Sakura. It did, but now its 11." Iruka said tapping an imaginary watch on his wrist.

The little girl scrunched up her nose, before shrugging, "I guess we got lost on the road of life."

At this point the whole room rolled their eyes. The kunai doesn't fall far from the pouch, somehow the Hatakes had created a whole new meaning for fashionably late.

The silver haired man crinkled his eye, a boyish look still remained on his face. He was the youngest parent in Konoha, of course not out of choice. His gloved hand gripped Sakura's gently, but the same arm revealed his anbu tattoo. Kakashi glanced around the room, noting and ignoring the waving blonde boy who was jumping up and down in his seat.

"Now then, I hope you don't need an invitation, there's seat in front of Uchiha-san," Iruka said tilting his head to an empty spot.

"Aa," Kakashi nodded, following Sakura who pulled on his hand.

The little girl hopped over, waving at Sasuke, who was squished between his mother and brother. He gave her a small smile and waved back, stealing a glance at Sakura's father who was staring right back at him.

"Uchiha-san, Itachi." Kakashi said nodding to the older Uchihas. Mikoto smiled in return, while Itachi nodded back, eyes twinkling with amusement.

Iruka cleared his throat and the father and daughter pair quickly sat down. This side of the room was stuffy, hot and humid, Sakura frowned feeling sticky. She glanced at the clock before putting her head on her the desk and closing her eyes. She imagined a cold place with lots of snow, far away from Konoha's warm weather. She'd jump around and play with Naruto, Sasuke-kun, but most definitely not Ino-pig.

Sakura had met the blonde almost three months ago, while going to the Uchiha compound. That day was slightly chilly, and the sky was gray with a thick soupy mix of clouds. Sakura had been walking on the street, with her bento box in one hand and her new weapons pouch strapped around her hip. A few droplets of water hit her face, and she immediately looked to her left.

There she was, the same little girl who would stand outside and shake a batch of tulips, almost every day. Sakura peeked into the bucket, observing the deformed ice cubes that floated on top.

"Can I help you?" the blonde girl asked, her face scrunching. Sakura shook her head.

"No, it's just that every time I walk by you spray water on me," the pink haired girl said, dropping her bento box on the ground, "those tulips are really pretty, why are they in ice water though?"

"Because they open up in warm water" she scoffed, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"But its cold today," Sakura said, to which the blonde shrugged and continued work.

A customer walked out the store, carrying a small paper bag filled with seeds, behind her a little brown haired boy followed. He glanced at the two girls staring at him, before turning away and muttering something. Sakura giggled, his hair was exactly like pineapple!

The blonde rolled her eyes at the boy's antics, before snapping at the girl in front of her, "Don't you have some where to be?"

"Ano... I've got some time, do you want any help?" Sakura asked moving towards her. However, the blue eyed child shook her head and held a hand up.

"No, just stay there, you're gonna mess something up." Sakura pouted and crossed her arms, but continued to watch the girl work.

"What's your name?" Sakura suddenly asked, while moving closer to the bucket.

"Ino. Yamanaka Ino." She said proudly.

Her clan was known for two things: their flower shops around Konoha and their unnerving mind jutsus. Sakura had heard of the Yamanakas from Sasuke-kun, who had pointed out their main compound while running laps. Surely enough, the compound was filled with bright flowers of many varieties, and there was a small green house attached for more exotic plants.

"I'm Sakura, because my hair is pink" the green eyed girl said, hoping the reference to flowers would make Ino like her more.

The blonde caught on, and scowled "Hmmm, maybe they should have called you Forehead-girl because of your large forehead."

Ino began to laugh loudly, causing Sakura's eyes twitch. If there was one thing she had learned from Sasuke-kun, it was never to back down when someone made fun of you. There was no way she was going to let Ino tease her. Sakura puffed up her chest and racked her large brain for a witty comeback.

"Ya, so? At least I don't laugh like a pig! Look at you snorting and all, you should be called… eto…Ino-pig!" The blonde's eyes widened as she straightened out and crossed her arms. No one stood up to Ino, she was an expert at insults.

"Hmph" she huffed, narrowing her blue eyes, "Well no one's going to marry you with that large pancake," Ino said poking Sakura's forehead.

The pink haired girl smiled, almost wickedly, "Well while you're at home being married and everything, I'm gonna be out kicking some bad guy butt! Because I'm going to be Konoha's best kunoichi!" Sakura said pointing a thumb at herself.

Ino scowled, "No I will, Forehead."

"We'll see Ino-pig!" Sakura grabbed her bento box and ran to the Uchiha compound. From then on she trained even harder.

Sakura opened her eyes groggily, and glanced at the clock. She inwardly screamed, only five minutes had passed by and the temperature of the room seemed to have increased by at least ten degrees. She grabbed the base of her neck, frowning when she felt the sweat beginning to cover it.

Ironically, the pink haired girl felt a chill run up her spine, someone was most definitely staring at her. Sasuke had taught her to rely on other senses as well, since sight often deceives. Whenever Sasuke-kun told her things like this, she knew, for sure, that it was something Itachi had taught him.

Sakura looked around a bit, until she caught sight of blue eyes. Speak of the Akuma! It was Ino-pig who was glaring daggers at her. They made eye contact, and turned their faces away in disgust, before looking back again. Ino stuck her tongue out, and in return Sakura made a face, which Ino quickly retaliated to.

They continued their childish behavior for almost five minutes, before being swatted by her father. She glared at Sakura one more time, before turning away for good.

Sakura glanced at her own father, who sat stilly next to her, seemingly listening to Iruka's speech. She sighed and reached over to her Otou-san's shirt, tugging on the rough material. Kakashi glanced at Sakura with one lazy eye, smiling before turning towards Iruka again.

"Otou-san" she whispered, leaning towards him. Kakashi hummed, though his gaze never left Iruka's.

"I'm bored" Sakura sighed, squishing her cheek to the palm of her hand.

Kakashi nodded in agreement, "Me too," he whispered back.

Sakura looked up at her father noticing something was off. In the brief time she had known him, there was only one thing he ever concentrated on, and that was training. She watched her Otou-san steadily and drifted her gaze to Itachi who was looking right at her.

The dark haired teenager gave her a small smile, shifting his eyes to her father and raising an eyebrow. Sakura looked back at her Otou-san again, with narrowed gaze, so her suspicion had been confirmed. Taking a kunai out of a holder strapped to her thigh, she brought it up to her father's back. Almost instantly the clone poofed away, causing everyone to look in her direction.

Sakura frowned, "He was a shadow clone the whole time!" she frowned crossing her arms and standing up.

"Sakura-chan, just sit for the rest of the orientation," the brown haired teacher sighed rubbing his forehead.

A vein appeared on Iruka's forehead, he didn't know whether to pity or be angry at the young girl. Kakashi really needed to step up his game as a father, he understood that the silver haired man was still young, but that didn't mean he could just whisk away his responsibility. It was bad enough that they lived separately, Kakashi in an apartment in downtown Konoha, and Sakura in house near the outskirts.

The brown haired man sighed again, it was Iruka's first year teaching at the Shinobi Academy. He always loved working with children, but this year's batch seemed especially rowdy, and he wasn't sure if he could handle them.

He resumed talking less passionately, after having his train of thought interrupted twice. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the pink haired girl had returned to her seat and the younger Uchiha had climbed over to sit next to her. The two whispered lightly while he spoke.

Behind Mikoto, sat the rest of the Uchiha children. The boys were listening intently to what he was saying, while the girls looked as though they could strangle the pink haired child. Iruka sighed, this was going to be a long year.

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"You let her destroy that clone" Itachi said, Kakashi shrugged.

He wasn't the type to sit around and listen to others talk, so before entering the orientation he had created a clone to take his place. The silver haired man was quite surprised that Sakura caught on to his deceit quickly, of course Itachi had helped.

They watched as the pink haired girl spoke excitedly to Sasuke, while Mikoto bought them each popsicles. The vender was an old man with wrinkled skin, who stood behind his refrigerated cart, a bamboo umbrella overhead shielded him from the sun. The dark haired woman asked Sakura a question, and the little girl ran towards them.

"Onii-san and Otou-san, Mikoto-san wants to know if you want anything," she asled squinting her eyes as she looked up at the taller men.

Kakashi shook his head, while Itachi asked for a cherry flavored popsicle.

"That's the one I'm getting too! Sasuke-kun wanted a tomato flavored one," Sakura giggled, "but they don't have any."

She was about to turn around, when a coin flew in her direction; Sakura caught it with one hand, looking up at her father.

"Pay for your own," Kakashi spoke leaning against an invisible wall. Sakura nodded and ran back to the vender.

Itachi sighed as he watched his pouting brother, who stomped his foot while speaking to their mother. Sakura then poked Sasuke's shoulder, telling him something that caused him to grumble even more. The little boy sulked away to Itachi and Kakashi, standing next to his older brother.

"What's wrong?" Itachi asked, patting the little boy's head. Sasuke just crossed his arms and turned the other way.

In a few minuted Mikoto made her way back to the trio, Sakura trailing behind with two cherry popsicles in her hand. She grinned up at Itachi, handing him one of them, which he took with a small thank you.

"Well, I have to return to the compound," Mikoto said kindly, "the designer is coming with new fabrics for the house. I have to quickly choose them before Fugaku does. Honestly, the man has a terrible sense of style"

Sasuke looked up at his mother, bewildered "Kaa-san! You can't say things like that about Otou- san!" Mikoto waved her hand.

"Right, right. Sasu-chan will you be coming with me or do you want to go with the rest?" Mikoto asked, smiling as she heard Sakura giggle from behind.

Sasuke glared in her direction, with a slight blush on his cheek. Sakura stuck her tongue out, Sasu-chan, she was definitely going to remember that.

"No kaa-san, fabrics are boring," the dark haired boy complained.

Mikoto shrugged and looked up at Itachi, "After you take the kids to the park, make sure to bring Hatake-san and Sakura-chan home for dinner."

Kakashi began to protest, but Mikoto waved a hand silencing all words "Ja ne!"

They watched her back grow smaller as she walked away, her Uchiha clan emblem blazing in the light, and contrasting with the dark blue of her dress. Itachi and Kakashi turned to walk, their feet silently hitting the road as they spoke about recent events in neighboring villages.

The two children followed behind, walking quietly as they tried to interpret what was being said. Sakura's popsicle dripped onto her hand, as it quickly melted from the heat. The red syrup rolled down to her wrist before dropping to the ground.

"Here," Sasuke said, producing a black silk handkerchief. Sakura stared at the item for a moment before shaking her head.

"No way, that's all expensive looking. I'll just ask the vendor for a tissue."

"By the time you go there it would have melted even more, just take it" Sasuke said, forcefully putting it on Sakura hand.

The little girl frowned, and used the smooth material to clean herself. She turned the handkerchief in her, not surprised when she saw his clan symbol. Her face scrunched up as she looked at Sasuke.

"Why do you have this?" she asked, shaking the light fabric.

"My mom always makes me carry one around," he grumbled, reluctantly taking it back from Sakura, his face screwing up at its wetness.

Sakura laughed, "Aaaw Sasu-chan is such a goo ittle boy!" she teased, poking Sasuke's arm.

The boy swatted her hand away and scowled at the nickname, great another reason to be embarrassed. He glanced at Sakura's face, her lips were stained red from the popsicle, and she had somehow gotten some of the syrup on her nose.

"Kami," Sasuke muttered, taking his handkerchief out again, "just throw away the popsicle, you're making a mess!" He stuffed the silk material in her hand, and pointed to his face, showing her where it was dirty.

The girl smiled cheekily and dabbed it away, throwing the half eaten treat into a nearby garbage can, and stuffing the handkerchief in her pocket to wash. She returned by his side.

"Ano, Sasuke-kun, are you nervous to start school? I mean it's our first day tomorrow!" Sakura said wringing her hands.

Sasuke shook his head, "No, I'm probably better than most of the kids."

He and Sakura had been training for quite a while now, almost 6 months and now they were about to begin their schooling in the Shinobi Academy. Truth be told, Sasuke was nervous to start, his brother had graduated in less than a year and Itachi was a prodigy, while Sasuke was just… Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun you're so full of yourself," Sakura tsked.

He glanced at the girl next to him, Sakura was probably better than some of the kids too. As much as the dark haired boy hated to admit it, Sakura was smarter than him, and better at explaining the technical details when it came to training. Sakura had an intimidating ability to memorize everything she sees. Photographic memory is what Itachi said.

"Hello is anyone home?" Sakura asked knocking on his head. The little boy smacked her hand away and scowled at her.

"What?!" he asked irritably, causing Itachi to glance back.

Sakura replied with equal vigor, "I asked if you wanted to have a race, but never mind now!" she ran up to walk next to her father.

Sasuke sulked behind, glaring at ever object that passed by. There were often times when Sasuke would question his decision of becoming Sakura's sensei. She was loud and very expressive, her eyes gave away everything, like an open book.

One of the most important lessons to Sasuke, was to remain passive, unreadable; it was a trait all Uchiha shinobis seemed to have. But Sakura took the idea and squashed it. She was just, so, so annoying.

Sasuke looked up to the object of his thoughts, surprised to see her not walking, but be carried on Kakashi's shoulders. Without thinking he bolted forward,

"Nii-san! Carry me too!" He said standing in front of the older Uchiha. Itachi smiled, and bent down easily lifting his brother and putting him on his shoulders.

"Copy cat!" Sakura said, sticking her tongue out. Sasuke blushed, before sticking his tongue out too.

Itachi chuckled, "You know, Sakura, your father's known as the Copy Cat Ninja," Sakura widened her eyes before tugging her father's hair.

"Really Otou-san?" she asked, surprised.

"Hai, now stop pulling my hair or I'll put you down," the silver haired man said, slightly annoyed.

Sakura huffed; often times her Otou-san could be very nice, buying toys for her, playing with her, and even taking her to his apartment. But other times he was a mean. When he had first brought her here, Sakura hadn't seen her father for almost a month before he decided to take her to lunch one day. Since then their relationship was slowly growing, but she could still feel some holes here and there.

The pink haired girl's frown deepened, and hurt flashed her eyes as she thought of different things. In fact, Azumi Obaa-chan was more of a parent than anything.

"Sakura look!" Sasuke said, smiling. He pointed to a tree branch that was coming. He stretched his hand up and broke off a leaf, twirling the stem in his hand.

They had been walking quite a distance now, moving away from the busy streets of down town Konoha, and going more towards a quieter area where most of the civilians live. There were many apartment buildings here, reaching a legal maximum of three stories, and surrounding a large park.

Konoha's park, was actually quite well known in the shinobi world. Large, but well maintained trees, were scattered along the park as well as grounds for lazing around. It was also the main event during the cherry blossom festival where may people came to look at the fireworks.

In fact a cherry blossom tree was fast approaching, and Sasuke repeated his action, but this time reached up and plucked a flower.

"Here," he said, "a Sakura flower for Sakura!" the pink haired girl accepted the gift with a smile, and a blush.

"Arigato, Sasuke-kun that was really sweet,"she said, causing Sasuke's face to turn red. He turned away and inwardly cursed himself.

The two sat in silence, watching another branch coming closer to them. It was a large and old tree with bumpy bark and dark large fanning leaves. It blocked out the bright sun, creating a large shadow on the bottom, perfect for lounging.

"I'm gonna do something really cool," Sakura said pointing to said branch.

The branch slowly approached, but instead of grabbing a leaf she held onto it. Sakura swung on the branch, wrapping her legs around it, before coming to sit on top.

"Miro! Miro!" she said, causing Itachi and Kakashi to turn.

Sasuke looked at slightly shocked, before smiling. He asked Itachi to put him down and ran underneath the branch.

"Sasuke-kun! I'm taller than you!" Sakura giggled, swinging her legs mockingly. Sasuke laughed and looked back at Itachi, who smiled back at him. Not surprisingly, it took only a few seconds for her too get bored.

"Okay, Otou-san I want to get down," Sakura said, shifting in her unusual seat.

She looked up at her father, waiting for him to come to help her, but the silver haired man didn't budge. Even Itachi and Sasuke looked at Kakashi, expecting him to go to his daughter.

"So then come down," Was all he said, before turning away.

Sakura's eyes widened, as she reached a hand out as though trying to stop him causing her to almost lose balance. She grabbed the branch again, stabilizing herself.

"Otou-san wait aren't you going to help me?" she asked, pleadingly.

"No," Kakashi said in a clipped voice, "get down by yourself," Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but Sasuke beat her to it.

"How can she Oji-san? She's too high up!" Sasuke said pointing to the tree.

The dark haired boy couldn't believe this man, how does he expect Sakura to come down by herself without getting hurt. He understood that for shinobis this would be piece of cake, but they hadn't reached that skill level yet. If she were to try, Sakura definitely end up twisting her ankle or breaking her leg. He stared at the pink haired girl, who was looking, almost pleadingly at her father.

"I don't care." Kakashi said, turning around to walk.

Itachi looked at his anbu teammate, slightly peeved. He moved forward to get the girl down himself, before a gloved hand stopped him.

"Don't. She wants to become anbu, then she can get down the tree. Honestly, at this age we were much more skilled." Kakashi said lazily.

Itachi nearly gawked at him, but the silver haired man's look said something else. So the teen quickly quieted up, Kakashi was planning something.

All the while Sasuke was racking his brain for a plan. Maybe she could climb down the tree, but looking at the branches, there weren't any low hanging ones, the only option was to jump.

"Sakura," Sasuke said hesitantly, he had an idea but it wasn't very smart, "if you jump, I'll try to catch you"

He wasn't very strong but if he could break her fall it might work, however Sakura completely disagreed.

"No way, are you crazy! I'm going to die!" she said dramatically

Sakura knew she was over exaggerating, but at the moment she couldn't help it. Sure she wanted to become an anbu, but she was hoping that she would learn how to hop trees, and jump down from large distances, before she actually had to do it.

Sasuke huffed and crossed his arms "You don't trust me."

Sakura nodded enthusiastically, "Yup, I don't."

The dark haired boy scowled, "I'm your sensei, and your friend. You trusted me when I showed you how to throw a kunai, when I showed you my new jutsu, and when I taught you how to use a bo staff, but not now?"

Sakura faltered, before sighing. She was scared, but pain and fear were both something she had to get used to. She glanced at her father one more time, who looked bored at the whole scene.

"Okay, Sasuke-kun" Sakura whispered.

"What?" the dark haired boy yelled from bellow.

"I said okay! Just move so when I drop I'll fall right on top." Sasuke nodded, and positioned himself.

"I'm ready" He said, a little nervous as well.

"Alright, then" Sakura said, "I'm coming down"

She looked around once, from her high perch. Noticing the birds that tweeted happily, the squirrels that skittered about, and the texture of the bumpy wood underneath her. She closed her eyes, and rubbed the brown branch one more time, before feeling it disappear underneath her.

Suddenly, warmth enwrapped her and she opened her eyes expecting to see Sasuke's, but instead she saw her father's crinkled one, indicting he was smiling.

"Otou-san!" She exclaimed with confusion.

Sakura looked around for Sasuke, noticing that he was standing a bit aside with his arms still out. He looked at Kakashi wide eyed, just as confused as the other child.

"But Otou-san, you said that…" Sakura questioned looking up at the silver haired man.

"I know what I said," he nodded putting his daughter on the ground, "but I wanted to see if you two can work together"

Sasuke and Sakura stole a look, "What?" they said simultaneously.

"Teamwork is important in every shinobi's life, so I wanted to see if you were really comrades, not just by words," Kakashi said, "And congratulations you passed!"

Sakura scrunched up her face. So she jumped off of a tree with the hopes of a six year old boy catching her and a high risk of both of them getting severely injured, just so she could learn a teamwork lesson. From the look on Sasuke's face he was thinking the same thing.

Itachi smiled at both of them encouragingly. He knew about Kakashi's emphasis on teamwork, and was glad that Kakashi had demonstrated it to the both of them. Of course, they would still need a few examples but it was a start. In fact, every time Sasuke helped or taught Sakura, and vise-versa, they were both demonstrating teamwork.

"So…" the pink haired girl said, "Do we get a prize?"

"After I taught you such a valuable lesson, a new moral to keep forever, you want a prize?" Kakashi asked dryly.

The two little kids nodded, and the older ones sighed. Honestly, this generation was already going downhill.

"Alright," Kakashi said, "I'll buy you each some ice cream," he stuffed his hands in his pocket and began to walk away.

"Yay, cherry ice cream!" Sakura exclaimed, running to her father.

"They don't have any tomato flavored!" Sasuke grumbled before catching up to his pink haired friend.

oOoOo **T **oOoOo** C **oOoOo

The sun was starting to dip back down, but its farewell hues of orange and dark pink had yet to arrive. It was late in Konoha, but quite active, especially in the Uchiha district where people were spotted around the streets.

A little shop next to the clan head's house was still open; inside, an old woman sat, with many treats behind her held in straw baskets. The goods inside had reduced in size, specifically her special sweet buns, which were the most popular.

A ding caught the old lady's attention, as she squinted her eyes to see who had come in. Black hair, pale skin, an Uchiha; she rolled her eyes, of course it was an Uchiha, but who exactly. Searching around, she looked through her hazy eyes, until she found the outline of her glasses. Grabbing them she put them on, finally seeing who had come in.

"Sasuke!" She said standing up, "How are you? How can I help you?"

The dark haired boy smiled brightly, he always loved talking to Obaa-san, "Konichiwa, I needed to buy something" Sasuke said, placing a coin on the counter.

He leaned forward, frowning when he saw a specific basket was empty, "You don't have any sweet buns left, do you?" Sasuke said almost dejectedly.

"I thought you don't like sweets Sasuke, and your mom already came to buy some for herself, in the morning"

"Hai, but my friend is here and _she_ likes sweet things," he said. The old lady tapped her chin, and closed her eyes as though she were in deep thought.

"Hmm, I did save one" Sasuke looked up at her hopefully, "but it's for my husband"

The little boy sighed, and grabbed his coin, "Tonikaku arigatou"

"Matte, matte! My husband can survive without a sweet bun," she said bending down, and taking out a brown bag. She picked the bun up and placed it inside, handing it to the little boy.

Sasuke began to give her the coin, when she shook her head, "It's a gift from me. Save up your money, okay? When your older I'll make you pay when you want to buy something for your friend," the old lad winked.

Sasuke brightened up, "Arigatou gozaimasu!" he bowed, before running out the door and back into his house.

Sakura had come over for dinner just as planned, and everyone, except for his father who was still at work, had sat down and enjoyed the delicious cooking.

oOoOo **T **oOoOo** C **oOoOo

Sakura dipped her feet lazily in the lake, yawning in her hand. They had recently eaten dinner at Sasuke's house, after which the dark haired boy had insisted in getting Sakura the best desert in the world. He had returned with a sticky sweet bun, eagerly putting it in Sakura's hand and pouting when she said she was too full. The green eyed girl promised to eat it tomorrow, for breakfast, a good way to begin her school days.

Sakura scrunched the paper bag in her hand as reminder. Otou-san and Itachi wanted to go train after eating. Sasuke and Sakura wanted to join them as well, thus resulting in their current situation.

The two older boys were sparring not far away, focusing mostly on a lazy taijutsu. Sakura kicked her feet in the water, pretending that she was swimming. The reflection of the moon rippled, disturbed from her movement, and the boy next to her.

"Yamete," Sasuke said, tapping her knee. The pink haired girl stopped, and sighed leaning back to lie down and look at the stars.

"Ne, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said whispering for an odd reason. It was so quite that it seemed wrong to disturb the peacefulness, "you learned your fireball jutsu here? Right?"

"Hai," he said softly, lying down next to her, "I wanted to make my Otou-san proud.

Which he had, after the burns, and exhaustion he had felt, his father had accepted his growth. Sasuke smiled, it was the first step to becoming like his Nii-san.

"I want to make Otou-san proud too," Sakura said, turning on her side so she face Sasuke, the little boy continued to look up at the sky.

They sat in silence for a bit, listening to sounds of crickets and enjoying the smell of nature. Streams of creamy moonlight lit the lake up, and Sakura couldn't help but sigh in the peacefulness.

"This is nice," Sakura mumbled as her gaze returned to the stars. It was strange to think about how small a person was compared to the rest of the world, but how much a difference one person can make.

She sat up to look at her father somewhere off in the distance, his silhouette danced as he sparred with the Uchiha heir. Sakura wanted nothing more than to make her father recognize her strength, but so far, no matter what she did was good enough.

The little girl sighed and pulled her knees close the her chest. It was a big world for such small people.

oOoOo **T **oOoOo** C **oOoOo

Miro- look!

Matte- wait

Tonikaku arigatou- thank you anyway

Arigatou gozaimasu- thank you very much

oOoOo T oOoOo C oOoOo

**Thank You all to have been supporting me I really appreciate it! There will be no love triangle! I hate love triangles.**

**QUICK QUESTION**

What foods did you like as a child but hate now? and vise versa.


	4. Chapter 4

**oOoO oOoO oOoO Tomatoes OoOo OoOo oOoO**

**oOoO oOoO and OoOo OoOo**

**OoOo Cherries oOoO**

Chapter 3

The blonde boy scratched his hair in confusion, staring at the complicated diagram on the page. It was the first day of school, and Naruto didn't expect there to be any work. Boy, had he been wrong.

Blue eyes scanned the paper again, _If a shinobi has 10 kunai, and drops 7 on the ground, how many does he have left?_

Naruto snorted, this ninja was really clumsy! Who drops seven kunai?

Sticking his fingers out, a trick Kaa-chan had taught him, the blonde hid seven of his fingers resulting in only three. The blonde nodded, so the answer was three! Puffing up his chest Naruto looked the room, sharing his glory.

He grinned, one question down, 19 more to go!

_If the same shinobi had six shuriken, what is the ratio of kunai to shuriken?_

Naruto scrunched his face up in confusion, trying to figure out what this new word meant. Was a ratio a type of weapon?

He glanced at the paper beside him, but the answers were promptly covered with a hand; Kiba glared at the cheating blonde.

Naruto pouted and crossed his arms, his eyes roaming over to the two silent classmates that sat in front of him. Both of them had finished their work a long time ago, and were currently relaxing.

"Phsst, Sakura-chan! What did you get for number two?" the blonde asked, leaning forward in his chair.

The pink haired girl turned and produced a wary look, "Naruto, I can show you how to do it, but I won't give you the answer."

"Leave her alone, dobe," Sasuke muttered, giving Naruto a pointed look.

The blonde stuck his tongue out, "I wasn't talking to you teme!"

The two rivals glared at each other, the tension almost visible in the room. Sakura sighed and tugged Sasuke's sleeve to make him return to his seat. The young Uchiha complied with a pout, sitting himself back down.

"Sasuke what are you doing this weekend?" Sakura beamed at him, a smile plastered on her face.

The dark haired boy shrugged, "there's an Uchiha gathering of some sorts."

Sakura's doe eyes filled with curiosity, "A family gathering? Oh that's right, Sasuke you're so lucky you have such a big family!"

Sasuke glanced at her and snorted, "It's not that great," the boy said pulling on his blue shirt, "There a lot of old people who always brag about their kids and praise Nii-san and Otou-san."

"That's fun Sasuke! I'm sure they praise you too," Sakura said grinning.

The young Uchiha frowned, "No they all want me to be like Nii-san because he's a prodigy."

Sakura's eyes widened, "But Sasuke you're Sasuke, not Itachi."

The dark haired boy tsked, and turned away "You wouldn't understand."

Sakura scrunched her face up, but decided against speaking. Sasuke seemed to cranky today, maybe this was what Naruto meant about Sasuke being moody. The pink haired girl sighed, glancing around the room.

There were many new people she met today, all from different clans, including the brown haired pineapple boy she kept seeing around. Apparently his name was Nara Shikamaru and he was very lazy.

To Sakura he didn't seem very smart, but he was able to answer this really difficult question Iruka-sensei had given him. Apparently everyone in the Nara clan had a high IQ and were key players in Konoha's strategy department.

The pink haired girl smiled, many people also thought she was smart. Her Otou-san said that she had photographic memory, something that would come useful for memorizing scrolls and information.

Her natural ability for academic learning also helped her with the difficult readings she had been picking up from the old Shinobi store. Her goal was to become an anbu medic and strategist, and to become just as strong, or even stronger than her Otou-san.

Sakura jumped as she heard chairs screech and a loud thump followed by a whimper. Sakura groaned, turning around again only to meet a teary blue eyes.

"Naruto! What's wrong?" The pink haired girl asked, standing up.

She placed a hand on his forehead, her small face scrunched, unable to detect anything.

"Sasuke kicked me!" The blonde wailed, pointing dramatically towards said boy.

His tears and unnecessarily loud shout, caught most of the class's attention as numerous eyes settled on the scene.

"I did not," Sasuke protested, crossing his pale arms, "He's lying!"

Sakura looked between the two unsure of who was lying, Naruto seemed to be crying genuinely but then again, Sasuke would never lie. Her contemplation caused her to miss the cheeky grin the blonde sent to the Uchiha.

The black haired boy's eye twitched, and he lunged at his friend knocking both of them to the ground.

All the girls got up from their seats, cheering on their Sasuke-kun, while the boys, preferring the cheery blonde to the sullen Uchiha, cheered on Naruto.

"Naruto! Sasuke!" Iruka yelled from his desk, rushing towards the two boys.

The teacher crossed his arms observing the scene from above, as his students attempted to strangle each other, Naruto's tears suspiciously gone. Iruka rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying to remind himself that it was only the first day of school.

He felt a small tug on his shirt, as his brown eyes met green, "Sensei, we should stop them!" Sakura exclaimed pointing towards the wrestling boys.

Iruka nodded warily, bending down and easily puling the two apart, "Both of you stop it," he scowled.

Naruto pouted, pointing at Sasuke from his suspended position, "He started it, I just wanted some help and he called me a dobe!"

"He called me teme!" Sasuke retaliated, crossing his arms.

Iruka set the two down, and glared at them, "Naruto, Sasuke, take this as a warning. This type of behavior is unacceptable, you will never become shinobi if you keep acting like this."

"But I want to become Hokage," Naruto whined, stomping his foot.

His teacher sighed, "The Hokage is able to get along with everyone, take your father for example."

The young blonde seemed to think about this, before he grinned, "But Sasuke, will always be Sasukuke-teme for me!" Naruto said sticking a thumb up.

The Uchiha tsked, "Dobe."

"Teme!"

"Bakas!" Sakura spoke sternly, "Get back to your seats,"

The two boys languidly made their way back, while the pink haired girl turned to grin at her teacher.

Iruka gave her a guarded smile, "Arigato, Sakura."

It's going to be a long year**. **

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

The courtyard was filled with numerous students of the same age, each of them playing within their small groups. Four Uchiha girls were grouped together, while five Uchiha boys were off in the corner, speaking amongst themselves- both groups were too proud to speak to others.

Sakura pouted, plopping herself down beneath a tree as she unwrapped the cloth around her bento box; for the first time in weeks, she was alone. It was all the two bakas fault, if they hadn't caused such as scene that she could have at least sat with Sasuke during lunch.

Sakura sighed, picking up her chopsticks and reaching for the first bite, only to have her lunch smacked away. The box fell, and the food inside scattered on the ground.

Sakura looked up to meet unfamiliar black eyes, "Why were you talking to Sasuke-kun?"

"Huh?" Sakura blinked trying to recall where she had seen this girl.

The tormentor was definitely an Uchiha, and judging for her bossy look and confidence stance, her family was probably somewhere high on the Uchiha clan's social ladder. Sakura scrunched up her face, this girl looked very familiar…

"I said why were you talking to Sasuke-kun?" the dark haired child repeated with a scowl.

"Sasuke's my friend!" Sakura reasoned, her fallen food catching the little girl's eye "You're mean for knocking down my lunch."

Azumi had prepared a special bento for her today, after all it was her first day of school and now it was completely destroyed! Sakura clenched her fist in frustration, and glared up at the taller girl.

"Tch, why would he be your friend," the girl rolled her eyes, "I mean you're not even pretty," she said causing Sakura to blush out of embarrassment, "Look at that forehead, its huge! Forehead-girl!"

The pink haired girl bit her lip, she didn't understand why so many girls were obsessed with Sasuke, after all he wasn't that amazing. Maybe it was because she was so close to him, that she knew he wasn't perfect.

"Hey!" A new voice called from the back, "I'm only allowed to call her that!"

A little blonde girl with stubborn blue eyes moved forward, her short hair pinned back with a dainty clip. Ino scowled at the fan girl, causing her to flinch.

"Whatever, Yamanaka, I was leaving anyway. Just make sure I don't catch you with Sasuke again," with one last glare the girl left.

Ino huffed sitting down next to Sakura a good distance apart.

The awkward silence that followed was only filled by the noises of other children in the background. Sakura shivered, pulling her tiny cardigan closer to her body; it was autumn and the chilly breezes of winter were starting to move in.

"Arigato, demo I was fine," the pink haired girl said, glancing quickly at the blonde.

Ino rolled her eyes, "I wasn't helping you it was just that Forehead is _my_ name. I won't let anyone else call you that."

"Fine then, I won't let anyone else call you pig because that's _my_ name," Sakura said, grinning.

"Here," Ino spoke, pushing her bento box towards Sakura, "This doesn't mean we're friends though."

The colorfully arranged bento looked quite appetizing the hungry girl, but Sakura was sure that Ino was just as hungry as her.

"What about you?"

Ino waved her off, "I'm not hungry, I had a big breakfast."

The pink haired girl shook her head, "No, I read in my book that younger kids should never miss a meal because we're growing!" she said, her hands moving animatedly, "We can share!"

Ino huffed, "Fine, but just remember we aren't –"

"Friends," Sakura said, "I know, I know. Let's just hurry up and eat before lunch is over!"

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

"Kami, forehead you're horrible at this!" Ino nearly yelled, grabbing the bouquet of flowers from Sakura's hand.

The pink haired girl pouted, "But I thought they were nice…"

A cool breeze swept over the rolling hills, where a groups of little girls stood picking at the flowers that grew randomly. Being a kunoichi didn't only mean knowing how to fight, it also meant knowing how to be a perfect woman.

Seduction was a powerful skill, and often times the deadliest. Therefore, starting from an early age additional training for kuniochis was offered at the academy. It was their first afterschool lesson, taught by Yumi-sensei a pretty, but plain woman who was rumored to have been a geisha.

"My family owns a flower shop Sakura," said the blonde girl, "So I would obviously know more about flowers," Ino flipped her hair back smiling, "plus I'm a better girl than you."

Sakura scoffed, "You can't be a better girl than me! Being a girl isn't even a skill!"

The pink haired girl frowned, she didn't understand the point in picking random flowers. It wasn't even spring, and there were only a few varieties to choose from, most of them were probably weeds.

Ino grinned, "Of course it is, and you better listen to me if you want to find out how to improve! Plus you'll never get Sasuke-kun by being all," she motioned with her hand, "all you."

The pink haired girl blinked, "D-demo! I don't like Sasuke he's my friend!"

The blonde rose an eyebrow, "Friend, Sakura?"

The girl replied with a nod, causing Ino to shake her head. The small girl walked up to her green eyed rival and placed two small hands on her shoulder.

"Forehead, forehead, forehead," Ino said shaking her head, "Mark my words, you'll start liking Sasuke-kun soon."

Sakura brushed Ino's hands off and crossed her arms, "Nu-uh, boys are weird."

The blue eyed girl laughed, "You're such a kid! Every girl likes Uchiha Sasuke!"

"Even you Ino-pig?" Sakura questioned, tilting her head.

"Duh! That's also why you're my rival!" the blonde said, with a hand on her hip, "I want to help you so that at least one of us can get Sasuke-kun, I don't want Miho to win, I hate her so much!"

Sakura's eyes widened, "Miho? Do you hate Miho more than me?"

Ino glanced at the pink haired girl with a look that screamed stupid, "Are you kidding me? I don't hate you, especially not as much as I hate Uchiha Miho?"

"Who's that?" Sakura said, scrunching up her face.

Ino shook the little girl, "Nani?! You don't know who she is?" Sakura shook her head, "Alright come sit down."

Ino tossed her own bouquet aside, not caring anymore about their assignment. Flowers could wait, right now she had to tell her clueless frien- er rival about second most famous Uchiha family.

"Uchiha Miho is possibly the most annoying, rude, mean, stupid, ugly person ever!" Ino whispered.

Sakura gasped, "Ino that's not very nice!"

The blonde rolled her eyes, "She's the same girl who bullied you this morning."

Sakura scowled, "That meanie! I don't like her anymore!"

Ino shushed her, "Now just listen, she belongs to a powerful Uchiha family like Sasuke-kun. It's rumored that Miho had been trained since she was younger just to marry into the head family! That's why she's so good at everything!"

The pink haired girl shook her head, "No, no she could barely finish the laps we had to do today."

"Exactly!" Ino exclaimed, "She was trained to be dainty and girly."

Sakura scoffed, "What's the point of being a kunoichi then?"

The blonde shushed her again, "I don't know but listen…"

As Sakura listened to the various stories of Uchiha Miho only one thought could cross her mind, how in kami did Ino know so much about a single girl? She was obviously a budding gossip queen, who would actually prove quite useful in the future.

Sakura nodded at that thought, but couldn't help but understand why everyone thought she liked Sasuke, after all he was only a good friend and sensei.

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

"Sakura," a small, yet familiar voice spoke from somewhere behind her.

The girl turned, clutching onto the strap of her bag as she made her way towards the little boy. It seemed like Sasuke had waited for her after the kunoichi training.

They had agreed that Sasuke would only train Sakura on the weekends, since school would probably be quite tiring, so Sakura had no idea what Sasuke wanted.

"Sasuke! Were you waiting for me?"

The little Uchiha scoffed, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "No I just happened to see you."

"Oh, you must have been playing with Naruto!"

Sasuke nodded, "The dobe forced me to," the dark haired boy stared at her intently, "You're not walking towards your house, so then where are you going?"

Sakura grinned at him, "I'm going to this shinobi store! That's where I get all my books from," she said, taking off her bag and retrieving a book, "See! I plan on getting a book about plants and flowers so I can show Ino-pig that I'm better than her!"

Sasuke grabbed the book, and opened it. His eyes scanning each page as he flipped through it, apparently Sakura was reading about the basic anatomy of the body, something that greatly disinterested Sasuke.

He tossed the book back to her, "We can go together, I have to be home by five, but I can stay with you for some time."

Sakura shook her head, "You don't have to Sasuke, I'll be fine by myself."

The dark haired boy shook his head, "I just want to make sure those bullies aren't there."

Sakura giggled and pinched his cheek, "Aw that's so sweet Sasu-sauce but I can take care of myself now," she grinned, "I'm not a sissy anymore."

Sasuke blushed, and slapped her hands away, "Stop doing that," he grumbled turning to look somewhere else, "And I wanted to go with you because we didn't get to spend time during lunch, and when you came back that Yamanaka girl sat with you."

The Uchiha turned back to glare at her, "I had to sit with dobe because of you."

The cobbled streets of Konoha were filled with colorful people enjoying the last days of sunshine before the biting winter came in. Other little girls passed by the duo, some throwing shy looks and other bluntly staring at the little Uchiha.

Sakura giggled and started walking, "I don't understand why you and Naruto fight so much," the pink haired girl said, glancing at Sasuke to make sure he was following her, "I mean you're both so similar!"

The dark haired boy shook his head, "No he's stupid and I'm not."

Sakura gasped, "I like Naruto though!" she said looking towards the sky, "He's really funny, and his eyes are really pretty."

Sasuke's own dark eyes widened, "Y-you don't like Naruto do you?"

The pink haired girl turned beet red, "No! He's a friend!" Sakura nodded, before biting her lip, "say, Sasuke did you know that Ino likes you?"

The young Uchiha rolled his eyes, "So do a lot of fan girls."

"A-ano you don't happen to know Miho?" Sakura asked, she panicked with the suspicious look Sasuke gave her and quickly added, "She's in our class, and I umm just met her."

Suddenly the little girl understood how Ino was able to learn so much about people, maybe now Sakura could have some information to tell the blonde.

Sasuke groaned, "She's my fourth cousin, and she won't leave me alone when we have Uchiha dinners. Her father is my dad's close friend, and he's very strict but loves Miho a lot that's why she's so spoiled."

The little boy sighed, "She's really annoying," he said before smirking and turning towards Sakura, "But not as annoying as you."

The pink haired girl pouted, crossing her arms "Hey! I'm not annoying!"

Sasuke shook his head, and flicked her forehead "The most annoying," he spoke before walking ahead, "Is that the store?"

Sakura rubbed the aching spot, "Hai," she grumbled, following after the little boy.

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

A little old lady was rummaging through a box when the door opened, it wasn't of the sound of the door that alerted her but the chattering of a little girl. It was the same little girl who had been coming to her store, and had been slowly buying away all her books.

"Sakura-chan! Welcome, how was your first day of school?"

The girl grinned, "It was great Obaa-san! This is my friend Uchiha Sasuke."

The little boy nodded, "Kunoichiwa,"

"Ah, I haven't had an Uchiha in my store for a long time," the old woman said pulling out glasses.

Gray eyes squinted at the tiny dark haired boy, who in turn stared back at the wrinkled face. With a nod the old lady concluded that Uchiha Sasuke would grow up to be handsome, just like the rest of his clan.

Sakura smiled, "Obaa-san, I need your help with finding a book about plants and flowers"

The old lady nodded, "Let me show you what I have."

Sasuke stayed put by the counter cautiously observing everything around him. The store was old and small but clean. There were a few suspicious jars, and many stacks of books that seemed to have a random order to him.

The little Uchiha turned around suddenly realizing that there was another customer in the store, hidden behind a tall book case. The dark haired boy narrowed his eyes, slowly stalking towards the stranger when said person suddenly moved out, resulting in a collision.

"Ow!" Sasuke said, holding his throbbing nose.

His small face met face first into what the toned stomach of the stranger. He looked up into amused eyes, before backing away and turning to find his pink haired friend, who had now returned to the counter.

"Sasuke, I don't have enough money," Sakura pouted, pointing towards the two books.

The dark haired boy read the spine of the merchandise, the gold letters were scratched out and faded making it hard to read, but from what Sasuke could see the books were about medical plants and healing.

"Oh," Sakura grinned, "I have some money from when Otou-san wanted me to pay for my popsicle," the little girl rubbed the back of her head, sheepishly, "Your mom didn't let me pay."

Sasuke's eyes widened, "I…I think I have some money too," he said taking it out from his pouch, "ano, Obaa-san didn't let me pay for the sweet buns."

Sakura glanced at what she had and what Sasuke had, "Its still not enough."

A shadow cast over them, as a tall woman, the same one who had bumped into him, as Sasuke noted, picked up one of the books Sakura had chosen.

"My, I haven't seen this journal for ages." The lady tsked, flipping through the old pages.

The pink haired girl scrunched up her face, and looked up, "You've read it?"

The older woman bent down so that she was eye level with the girl, "I wrote it, it's mine and its most certainly not meant for little girls." The lady straightened up again, "What's your name?"

"Sakura."

"Well Sakura," said the woman, placing the rest of the money needed into girl's hand, "If you can finish this book in three weeks from today, then meet me here again."

The mysterious lady nodded at the store keeper, "Good day Kimi-san,"

The old woman bowed, "Good day too you to, Tsunade-sama."

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

"Oh Sasu-sauce you look so sweet," Mikoto said pinching his cheek. Sasuke blushed and slapped her hand away, what was it with women and pinching his cheek.

"Kaa-san, I'm not a baby anymore," the little Uchiha pouted, "I've already started the academy! I'm practically a shinobi!"

His elegant mother tsked, "Sasuke you still have at least five more years of the academy before you really become a shinobi."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, pulling on the collar of his dark blue kimono, "Kaa-san, I'm already better everyone in my class, I should graduate already."

"Kaa-san didn't let me graduate early," a new voice said from the doorway.

"Nii-san!"

Uchiha Itachi smiled at his little brother, as he stood leaning in the doorway of Sasuke's room. His black kimono accented his chiseled features, and flawless pale skin; he looked more like and adult than a teenager.

"Ita! You look so kawaii!" Mikoto mother said, now pinching his cheeks, "Kami-sama! Have you lost weight? You've lost all your cheek fat, or maybe its just because Sasuke has more…"

"Kaa-san!" the little Uchiha whined causing Itachi to let out a chuckle.

The older brother walked up to the younger one, and adjusted his kimono, "You shouldn't try to grow up so fast Ototo, just try to enjoy now," Itachi spoke, leaning closer to whisper just to Sasuke, "Plus the fangirls get much worse when your older."

Mikoto gasped, "Come on kodomo-tachi, we're getting late!" the older woman adjust her hair, making sure it there weren't any loose strands poking out, "How do I look?"

"Sutekina," Sasuke grumbled, moving towards his mother's outstretched hand.

Itachi nodded, "Beautiful as always."

Mikoto blushed, "Oh my baby boys," she said grabbing them into a group hug, "they grow up so fast!"

From somewhere behind them, in the dark hallways a man sighed, "Mikoto we're getting late," Fugaku complained, his posture radiating his annoyance at the imperfection.

The dark haired woman nodded allowing her husband to stride up by her, "Okay, Itachi, Sasuke behave. I don't want you to be rude to anyone, especially you Sasuke." Mikoto said with a pointed look, before her face brightened up, "And just have fun okay? It's a family gathering after all!"

Sasuke shared a glance with his brother, before the two sons nodded.

The group walked silently out of their house, entering the streets where some other Uchihas were also walking to reach the banquet hall. Everyone in the Uchiha clan was invited to this gathering, though only the most prestigious families could afford to buy seats.

It was for this same reason that some of the poorer Uchiha families had actually moved out of the large compound and into the newer parts of Konoha- the lack of representation they got in clan affairs annoyed them.

Some Uchiha-centered people called those that left traitors, though some of the more village oriented ones, like Itachi, called it diffusion and integration.

The dark haired teen ran a hand through his bangs. Unlike his father, who wanted to keep the main village and the Uchiha clan separated, when he became clan head, Itachi planned on taking steps to get the clan compound to reduce in size and more Uchihas to move into the village. It wouldn't be easy but at least he could try.

"Here we are," Mikoto exclaimed, turning to her children and pointing a finger, "remember what I said!"

Fugaku scowled, "Mikoto I'm sure they understand, can we stop chatting and enter. We're the head family and we're late."

His wife nodded patting his hand, before following him inside. With one last stare Mikoto looked forward and put on a slight smile that wasn't too indecent, just like she had always did. Itachi straightened up, poking his brother to do the same.

Sasuke frowned as the entered the hall, which was filled with a sea of blue and black kimonos the Uchiha sign apparent on all. A few women wore purple, or even a light blue but for the most part all the Uchihas stuck to the cool color scheme.

Heads turned their way as the family entered the room, with the elegance and grace of nobles that they were akin to.

Sasuke glared at the little girls that gaped at him, before rolling his eyes and glancing at his brother who smiled kindly at him.

"Don't worry Ototo, family gathering only happen once a month, it will be over soon." Itachi said softly as they closed in on their table.

Sasuke pouted, "I know, but what's the point of these gathering? We never do anything."

The older Uchiha smiled, "It's more for families to show off and, most importantly, for gossip. By the time all the drama and rumors are over, the next family gathering takes place, just to restart the cycle."

The dark haired boy rolled his eyes, "So its basically for the women."

Itachi looked at him with amusement, "You'd be surprised," he said slightly tilting his head towards the older men behind him.

Sasuke looked over his brother's shoulder to stare at the men around his father's age. They were all grouped together and seemed to be discussing something quite intently.

"Ano, what are they talking about?" the little boy asked his brother.

Itachi shrugged, "Comparing their children, if you noticed all those men have daughters your age."

Sasuke glanced at the men again, "So?"

"Nothing," Itachi said cryptically, "Just make sure you don't-"

"Sasuke-kun!" a squeaky voice said from somewhere behind them.

Another irritated voice piped in, "Slow down Miho."

Two girl girls with silky hair and equally silky kimonos, joined the brother duo; one of them had stars in her eyes, the other spears.

"Sasuke-kun! I never though you would come," Miho said hugging the boy, "you were late!"

Cho glared at her younger sister, "Let go of him would you Miho?"

The dark haired boy shrugged the girl off and moved closer to his brother. He didn't want to be rude to Miho because of the secret warning his mother had given them, so Sasuke decided that silence was the key to escaping her.

"I had a mission, so we had to come late," Itachi said, nodding towards the little girl.

Miho clapped her hands, "Oh, how did it go Nii-san?"

The older Uchiha smiled kindly, "It went well, thank you. I've heard it was your first day at the academy Miho, how was it?"

"Wonderful, I did well!" she replied, grinning at him.

Cho snorted from beside her, "Miho couldn't even finish her laps."

"Nee-san!" the little girl blushed, "I wasn't feeling well."

"I hope you feel better," Itachi said, "You should see the doctor, just to make sure it isn't too serious."

The older sister rolled her eyes at his response, "She's fine Itachi-san, if anything she has a case of low stamina," before Miho could retort, Cho continued on, "Ne Sasuke? How's that pink haired friend of yours?"

The little boy looked up surprised, "You mean Sakura? How do you know her?"

Miho glared at her sister for bringing up the girl, as Cho casually replied, "We keep bumping into each other, I actually saw her the other day, couldn't remember her name though."

A new voice piped in, "Couldn't remember her name Cho-chan, she has pink hair and her name is Sakura, how is that so hard to remember," Shisui said, sarcastically.

The teen walked up to Itachi, causally leaning an elbow on his cousin's shoulder. His eyes stared amusingly at the flustered girl, who was flushed red.

"Urusai, Shisui-kun. Not everyone is blessed with you intelligence," Cho seethed out, trying to cover her embarrassment with anger.

Shisui smirked, "Maybe I could give you some lessons in intelligence Cho-chan," he said leaning to grab a strand of her hair, "though I could teach you more pleasurable things, if you prefered."

Cho pushed him away and grabbed her sister's arm "Come on Cho, we're leaving," she said glaring at Shisui.

"N-nee-san, matte!" Miho tried, pulling on her sister's arm, but Cho persisted, successfully dragging away the little girl.

"Shisui," Itachi said disapprovingly, "that was rude."

The older cousin laughed, "Nani? I just offered her some lessons, I could be her sensei," Shisui said moving his eyebrows suggestively.

Sasuke shook his head, "I don't understand…" he said, gaining the two older teen's attention, "How is offering her lessons rude, I mean it's just like I'm Sakura's sensei ne?

Shisui cracked up, bellowing out laughter as Itachi's look of disapproval deepened, "Sasuke, oh Sasuke," the cousin said, placing to hands on the boy's shoulder, "How often do you teach Sakura."

Sasuke scrunched up his face, "Ano, I think three times a week,"

Shisui gasped dramatically, "No! You have to give her lessons everyday otherwise she'll find another sensei!"

Itachi scowled, "Shisui, that's enough."

But the older cousin didn't heed, and instead lifted one hand to quite down the annoyed older brother, "Ne Sasuke?" he grinned mischievously, his voice dropping "What do you teach her?"

The little boy shrugged, "We both kind of learn together," he replied innocently.

Shisui clapped a hand on his face to suppress a perverse giggle, while Itachi repressed the urge to punch his cousin.

"Sasuke promise you'll be a good sensei to Sakura," Shisui said smiling a bit softer now, "And I promise I'll be a good sensei to Cho."

Sasuke looked up, completely out of the loop, "Hai."

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

Sakura giggled as the koi fish swam up to eat the breadcrumbs she offered them, "Otou-san, come look! They're so kawaii," the pink haired girl grinned.

Kakashi sighed and shook his head as he watched their stock of bread slowly decrease, "Sakura if you keep wasting bread like this, we won't have anything to eat."

The little girl smiled, "Don't worry Otou-san, we can always go to the store!"

The setting sun set the sky on fire with an orange hue, as the father-daughter duo stood watching the colorful fish gobble the offered food.

"Look Otou-san," Sakura pointed, "The fish are the same color as the sky!"

The silver haired man nodded, looking up; it was truly a beautiful sunset.

"Sakura, dinner will be ready soon," a voice spoke from the doorway, just before Azumi's head popped outside, "I should have known you took my bread hime!" the little woman tsked and reentered the house.

The pink haired girl looked up, "Will you be having dinner with us Otou-san or are you going home now?"

Kakashi sighed, adjusting the fingerless gloves on his hand, "Aa. I'll stay."

Sakura giggled grabbing his hand, and pulling him down to sit by her, "Yay! Azumi Obaa-chan made tempura today, because it was my first day of school!"

The older man nodded, "You like tempura."

"Its my favorite!" Sakura smiled.

Kakashi hummed in reply, crossing his legs as he sat, almost awkwardly on the ground. When was the last time he had done something so childish? He had not idea.

"How is Itachi's brother?" the silver haired man asked, trying to fill up the silence.

Sakura smiled, scotching closer to her father, "Sasuke is fine, he has a family reunion today."

Kakashi nodded in understanding, the Uchihas were a big clan and really emphasized unity amongst themselves. He pitied Itachi who was probably bearing the terrible company of his uptight relatives.

He scoffed inwardly, the Uchiha family reunion could barely be called a reunion after all most of the Uchihas saw each other everyday, and some even refused to associate themselves with people other than Uchihas. Not to mention there was all that inbreeding...

"Sasuke's lucky for having such a big family, ne? Otou-san?"

Kakashi glanced at his daughter, "It isn't as amazing as you think it to be," he said, "closer bonds are formed within a small group of people."

Sakura nodded slowly, "I guess your right."

Her father gave her a half smile, "Anyone can become a part of your family Sakura, if you just learn to love them."

The little girl frowned, moving towards her father to lean against him, "I miss Obaa-san, Otou-san. When can I see her again?"

Kakashi sighed, if only she knew why exactly he had to bring her to Konoha.

**oOoOo ****T ****oOoOo****C ****oOoOo**

**Sorry for not updating for so long! I was actually going to stop this fic, but I fell in love with it again partially because of some of the people that pm'd me regarding the late update, so thank you!**

**If you haven't noticed I love parallel relationships, which you'll see a lot in this story especially. ex. Sakura nd Ino, Naruto nd Sasuke **

**Thank you so much !**

**QUICK QUESTION**

What's the meanest thing you've down to a sibling or a friend? (I think once I told my friend to shut up, but in a snappy way. I apologized later tho :P)


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